Coin Collecting

money -> Coins-US -> Dollars

Liberty Head silver dollars have been referred to in many different ways over the years. First they were called Buzzard Dollars, because no one really liked the original design of the rather scrawny eagle on the back. The large, heavy coins were also referred to as Cartwheels, and are today most commonly referred to as Morgan Dollars, after their creator, George T. Morgan.

Though when they first appeared in 1878 these coins weren’t popular at all, today Liberty Head silver dollars are one of the most collectible coins in the world, among silver and all other types of coins. When these coins were minted, the dollar coin had been discontinued for 5 years already, with Americans showing a clear preference for paper dollars. The coins were minted because of the large silver surplus created by the purchase of silver from the Comstock lode in Nevada, to keep Nevada’s economy above water. To use the silver, these coins were commissioned.

George Morgan was an Englishman who designed the Liberty Head silver dollars, and despite his post as US Chief Engraver after that, one he held for over 40 years, these coins were the only American ones he ever designed. Because these coins weren’t popular and few people used them, production stopped in 1904. Many of the coins were melted down in 1918 to help Great Britain’s war efforts. Then more were minted in 1921, but only for a brief time before the Peace Dollar was minted to commemorate the end of the war, and quickly became the most popular silver dollar in America.

The Liberty Head silver dollars continued to be melted town, and the public showed little interest in collecting them until about 1972, when a large collection of over 400 bags of the rare Carson City minted dollars was discovered. The collection ended up selling at auction for over $7 million dollars. While all these dollars are collectible, some are more valuable and sought out than others.

The most rare Liberty Head silver dollars are those minted in 1895. Called the “king” of these dollars, some have sold for over $100,000 at auction. What makes these coins particularly valuable is their rarity, and the mystery surrounding them. Twelve-thousand 1895 coins were struck, according to mint records, yet only about 80 have ever been accounted for, and all of those were proofs. None of the regular circulation coins have been recovered. Whether they were ever minted at all comes into question, but doesn’t lessen the mystique of the coin.

Liberty Head silver dollars, aside from the 1895 strike, aren’t particularly rare because millions of these coins were minted. They were larger than typical coins, and the original eagle design wasn’t popular, yet today they’re consider one of the most collectible US coins available. Online auctions are an inexpensive and ideal way to purchase these collectible coins, whether you want to purchase them to begin investing in silver, or to make the Liberty Head silver dollars an important part of your coin collection.

Originally posted 2008-11-11 14:00:28. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Money -> Small-Cents -> Lincoln-Wheat-1909-1958

Probably one of the easiest coins to acquire for a coin collection is the wheat penny. This coin was a United States penny minted from 1909 to 1958. The coin goes by many names, including the Lincoln Wheat Cent and Wheatie, and was worth 1 cent at the time it was minted. While few are worth more than that today, some uncirculated mintings have gone for thousands of dollars at auction.

Most of us who had grandparents or parents who kept pennies in jars have been able to search through those coins and find at least one wheat penny or two. The front of the penny looks indistinguishable, at first glance at least, from the pennies minted today because they still bear the bust of Lincoln on the front (or obverse) side of the coin. The back of course is different, because the two wheat stalks that were on the reverse of the wheat penny were replaced with the Lincoln memorial in 1959.

The change in the reverse design, however, isn’t the only different between the wheat penny and the modern penny. And there are even variations among wheat pennies, depending on the year the penny was minted. Some of the wheat pennies produced in the beginning featured the initials of the sculptor, Victor David Brenner, on the reverse side of the coin below the wheat stalks.

This was a cause of controversy, however, and in 1918 the initials VDB were moved to the front of the coin. You must look very closely at a wheat penny from those early years and you’ll see the tiny initials on the bottom of Lincoln’s bust, below his shoulder. The coins produced before the change was made in California are more valuable than most other types of these pennies, because less than half a million were produced by that mint before the public complained enough about the prominent initial display to have it changed.

These early pennies are called “VDB” cents due to the placement of the initials. If you happen to find a 1909 wheat penny with those initials on the back below the wheat stalks that was minted in San Francisco, California, even if the coin is in poor condition, it could be worth hundreds of dollars. Mint coins with that configuration can go for much, much more. VDB cents minted in Philadelphia hold much less value, because more were produced. The 1914-D coins are also typically quite valuable.

A wheat penny with a minting error can also be valuable, such as the 1922 penny that looks plain because the die was full and couldn’t imprint the coin, and one produced in 1955 which appears minted twice, known as the doubled die coin.

If you can find lots of wheat pennies for very little money, you might enjoy looking for these different variations. Someone without an interest in the wheat penny who puts several up for auction in a lot might not even be aware that they’re selling a gem.

Originally posted 2008-11-17 14:00:16. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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